Tailored oils

Abstract

Recombinant DNA techniques are used to produce oleaginous recombinant cells that produce triglyceride oils having desired fatty acid profiles and regiospecific or stereospecific profiles. Genes manipulated include those encoding stearoyl-ACP desturase, delta 12 fatty acid desaturase, acyl-ACP thioesterase, ketoacyl-ACP synthase, and lysophosphatidic acid acyltransferase. The oil produced can have enhanced oxidative or thermal stability, or can be useful as a frying oil, shortening, roll-in shortening, tempering fat, cocoa butter replacement, as a lubricant, or as a feedstock for various chemical processes. The fatty acid profile can be enriched in midchain profiles or the oil can be enriched in triglycerides of the saturated-unsatturated-saturated type.

What is claimed is:  
     
       1. A triglyceride oil produced by a microalgae, the oil having an altered fatty acid profile relative to an oil produced by a non-recombinant microalgae, comprising 3.5% or less saturated fatty acids, greater than 50% oleic acid, and optionally comprising greater than 1% palmitoleic acid, wherein the microalgae is a recombinant oleaginous cell of the genus  Prototheca , comprising an exogenous gene encoding an active ketoacyl-ACP synthase. 
     
     
       2. The oil of  claim 1 , having between 0.1 and 3.5% saturated fatty acids. 
     
     
       3. The oil of  claim 1 , comprising at least 90% oleic acid. 
     
     
       4. The oil of  claim 3 , comprising at least 3% polyunsaturated fatty acids. 
     
     
       5. The oil of  claim 1 , optionally refined, bleached and deodorized, comprising:
 at least 10% ergosterol as a percentage of total sterols; and 
 β-sitosterol, wherein the ratio of ergosterol to β-sitosterol is greater than 25:1.